Wilchester residents voice flooding woes

Drainage project is still on District G's improvement plan

Wilchester resident Larry Bruno said it is time for the city of Houston to fix the flooding problem that has plagued his west Houston subdivision for years.

Bruno said he and his neighbors are worried that the city's budget woes will delay or delete the Wilchester drainage project from the city's five-year rolling capital improvements plan.

The subdivision is located off Wilcrest Drive between Interstate 10 and Memorial Drive.

He was one of about 50 west Houston residents who showed up last week to hear -- or speak about -- a variety of ongoing and proposed projects at last week's District G's annual capital improvements plan and budget meeting.

Bruno handed Pam Holm, District G Houston City Councilwoman, a list of 90 Wilchester homeowners whose homes have been flooded several times.

"It seems that every time we flood, our project becomes a priority, but other neighborhoods always get fixed first," Bruno said. "We would like to know if the project is going to be dropped."

Gary Oradat, deputy director of the city of Houston's public works and engineering department, said the Wilchester project is in the design phase this year and would not be dropped from the upcoming 2005-2009 capital improvements plan.

Oradat said the Wilchester project's 2006 construction schedule could be delayed based on available funding.

He said public works was working under the assumption that several projects in the capital improvements plan would be funded through the passage of a city-wide drainage fee and restructuring of the city's water and sewer debt in 2003.

City council did not pass the drainage fee and the debt was not restructured.

"Now we have to go back to the drawing board and look at plan B," Oradat said. "The issue we have is funding. We do not have enough money to go around."

The city also would move forward with any neighborhood stormwater management projects, called "SWAMP" projects.

Wilchester is a SWAMP project, he said.

Holm said she is committed to seeing all District G drainage projects through to the end, and asked Oradat if any projects on the existing capital improvements plan would be dropped.

"If the project is under design now, it will not be sacrificed," Oradat said. "We are short of funds in the next five years so we may have to move money from paving projects to these drainage projects."

Several at the District G meeting asked Holm and other city department heads to add new street projects to the next version of that rolling five-year plan.

Amy Watkins, a Nottingham Forest resident, asked if it was possible to add a fifth lane to Memorial Drive. The road is two lanes in each direction from the West Loop west to Texas 6. There are left-turn lanes spread out along the corridor, but no continuous middle turn lane.

"There was a traffic accident at Memorial Drive and Clear Springs, and my twins and I were almost run over," Watkins said. "There was once a study ongoing to add a lane to Memorial Drive, and I've heard there is other sources of funding available. What do we do to get this on the table at the city?"

Holm said a Memorial Drive project is not in District G's CIP, but would be discussed by her newly-formed district advisory council, which will have representatives from various civic associations, apartment communities and commercial areas.

"There is no doubt Memorial Drive is dangerous and crowded," Holm said. "With the I-10 reconstruction project it will only get worse."

Bill Hopkins, a Westchester subdivision resident, said he felt the situation could be remedied with a restriping of lanes instead of widening the road. He said he would also like to see Green Park Drive -- a neighborhood street between Dairy-Ashford and Memorial drives -- repaved.

"Is this a CIP issue?" Hopkins asked.

Oradat said it would be listed under the CIP's neighborhood street reconstruction program.

He said all street reconstruction projects require 75 percent of property owners on that street to sign a petition stating they support the project, and are willing to be assessed a fee for the project if the city chooses to do so.

If the petition is approved, the project is prioritized and put on the neighborhood street reconstruction list.

"It typically takes about six to seven years to get to a neighborhood street project," Oradat said. "And, if a project is put on the list, and another street in worse condition comes up, it may be moved ahead."

Several residents raised issues about water leaks and potholes.

Oradat urged residents to call the city of Houston's 3-1-1 hotline -- a customer service line for non-emergency, city-related problems.

"Be sure to get a reference number," Oradat said. "Then it is very easy for us and your councilmember to check on it. It is an effective system."

Holm said she and her staff would take information gleaned from residents and build a case for new projects on the city's proposed 2005-09 CIP.

Houston City Council will vote on that document later this year.

She said they also would work with the advisory council on a six-year plan for District G.

"All 270,000 residents in District G play a significant role in determining the big picture," Holm said. "This is only the beginning of the process."